Gardening enhances my own life. I get to know my neighbors while I'm out in my yard, I get to know the plants that grow here, I work with other people who also want to learn about how to grow food better, and I feel a sense of connection with the seasons and the earth that has been ignored in our culture today.
I have created a garden at my house on N. Mason Street and at N. Mississippi + N. Failing.
My gardening practices center around the principles articulated in the permaculture movement.
- I build soil quality through compost, mulching, and low-till garden practices.
- I reduce water-use by harvesting rainwater during the rainy season and use it during the dry season. I also plant and mulch densely, keeping soil covered from the drying sunlight. Hand-watering also reduces water-use.
- I collect leaves, food scraps, compost, coffee grounds and other organic materials from around the gardens.
- I cover crop or sheet mulch beds over the winter in order to help retain soil quality during the rainy months.
- I companion-plant different crops together to maximize production, reduce my workload, and provide the best growing habitat for each specific plant.
- I save seeds and trade with other local farmers in order to preserve local varieties, but also to keep my carbon seed miles low. Seeds in packets often travel from all over the world and are grown on large farms.
